Company

Nicks Handmade Boots began in 1964 in Spokane, Washington, with the purpose of building the best work boots possible, from the best leather and materials, and with the idea of earning customers for life. Today no company makes a better work boot than Nicks and we are proud that all of our products are still made in the USA with American materials.

All of you know how to research a company on-line, and you can see that we get a lot of great reviews. These actual comments define who we are: “Concerned about customer satisfaction”; “Care about our customers”; “Best Wildland fireboot on the market”; “I’m a customer for life”; “Durability”, “Fit like a glove”‘; “These will be passed to my son some day”; “Putting on a new pair of Nicks Boots that fit perfectly changed my entire summer”; “I will forever use Nicks Boots”; “Outstanding for the price”; “Best boot I’ve ever owned”; “Prize Possession”; “I’m glad I pushed through and finished the break in period because now they’re the most comfortable shoe I’ve ever had”; “Excellent small business spirit”.

You also know we received too many One Stars. We mostly succeeded spectacularly but when we failed they were doozies! These were due to a transitional 2016 with a factory move that delayed deliveries significantly and outgrowing our systems for managing orders. Also, sometimes remote fitting is really hard. But in every case we gave money back when our customers weren’t satisfied or kept trying until they were. And we learned and made improvements and have lead times and quality and processes under control as we build to support our growing handmade boot customer base. Thankfully poor reviews are rare now.

The craftsmanship we use today is 500-year-old European technology– we don’t use welting machines. At Nicks a welt is sewn by hand to the vamp (toe) leather through a grooved channel on the bottom side of the inner sole – using an awl and special waxed thread. For more: FAQ: What are welted boots? Nicks Welted construction allows the leather to contour around the foot with a snug fit, and is best for custom fitting or unusual requirements. Welted boots include our Hot Shot® fire boot, Homesteader, Lineman, Packers and Exotics. In the last 50 years we have learned that our work boots with our Legendary Four-Layer Arch Support have become as important to our customers as any tool they own to get through a long day on the their feet. Wildland firefighters working in rough terrain have become our largest group of customers.

Many customers require a pair of different sized boots for each foot, or a modification of a last. However, most can fit into a standard, stock size. Whatever the outcome, we will need to measure your foot. Due to the high arch our boots are often sized differently than what you are used to. We realize this takes more work to get the correct fit and have developed tools and expertise to fit you remotely.

You will see more casual boots and shoes being offered on our website. A new family of casual boots meets the need of our customers who desire the arch support for their weekend shoes. We also have some low arch versions being launched. Look for the Robert, Traveler,&nbspRenegade, and more.

As thousands of customers (may of them wildland firefighters) can attest, once you have broken in a pair of Nicks Handmade Boots, you’ll never go back to the machine-made or mass-produced boots. Click here to see our Testimonials.